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Michigan City BZA adopts variance allowing tattoo parlor at 3515 Franklin St.; business must close by 10 p.m.
Summary
The Michigan City Board of Zoning Appeals adopted findings and approved a development standards variance and special exception use for a tattoo establishment at 3515 Franklin St., subject to a 10 p.m. closing time. The motion passed unanimously.
The Michigan City Board of Zoning Appeals on March 11 adopted the decision and findings for petition B-107-24, approving a development standards variance and a special exception to allow a tattoo establishment at 3515 Franklin Street, Building A1, subject to the condition that the business not operate after 10 p.m.
Attorney Hale presented the board’s written findings, summarizing that the property is zoned B-2 (commercial) and that the petitioner, Jacqueline Scarborough, and property owners DNC Executive Properties LLC and David Lewis had requested a variance to allow a tattoo establishment within 100 feet of a residential district. Hale said the board’s earlier findings, as reflected in staff reports, supported granting both the variance and the special exception with the 10 p.m. closing condition.
The motion to adopt the decision and findings was made by board member Mister Gross and seconded by board member Deborah Vance. A roll-call vote recorded all members voting yes; the board announced the motion approved. The decision references the earlier board action on February 14, 2025, and the written decision on petition B-107-24 as the basis for tonight’s adoption.
During public comment, Tommy Kolovic of 1316 Ohio Street urged the board to also set an opening hour for the tattoo business, suggesting a 10 a.m. opening so operations would be limited to a 12-hour day; the board made no change to the adopted condition, which addresses only the closing time. Kolovic also raised unrelated concerns about portable advertising signs for a cannabis dispensary in the area (see separate account of public comment).
The board’s adopted document and the motion record the approval as presented, with the single operating condition that the tattoo establishment not operate past 10 p.m.
